The Atlantic record for most named tropical cyclones in one season was broken as Theta formed in the Central Atlantic last Monday.

What You Need To Know

  • Theta is a tropical storm in the Atlantic, moving east

  • It won't affect the United States

  • The storm breaks the record for most named storms in one season

Theta formed Monday, November 9, breaking the record for most named storms in any Atlantic season. It transitioned into a tropical storm the next day.

Forecast

After crossing the northeastern Atlantic, Theta is ending its time as a tropical system. It has weakend into a tropical depression and is forecast to no longer be tropical sometime Sunday as it swirls west of Portugal.

Breaking the Big One

With Theta, 2020 eclipses 2005 for most named storms in any Atlantic hurricane season.

In the record-breaking 2005 season, 27 different storms received a name, one shy of 2020 with Eta in place. But after the 2005 season finished, the National Hurricane Center added a storm in the eastern Atlantic Ocean in its post-Atlantic season analysis.

While that re-analyzed storm never received a name, it means that the 2005 hurricane season officially featured 28 different storms.

The 2020 Atlantic season has now beaten 2005 for most named storms. But that's just the start of the records that 2020's smashed.

 

Records, Records, and More Records

After Tropical Storm Eta made landfall in the United States, it became the 12th tropical cyclone to do so. Here's a look at the other 11 U.S. landfalls.

You name the record, and there's a decent chance that the 2020 Atlantic tropical season's broken it.

From the earliest named storms on record to a record-breaking 12 landfalls, 2020 is producing a laundry list of records - and we still have a few weeks to go in the official season.